Almere City FC was unable to make a fist against AFC Ajax in the penultimate round of the Eredivisie. The Almeers, who secured a new year in the highest football division of the Netherlands last Monday evening, lost 3-0 in the Johan Cruijff ArenA.
It is already clear after fifteen minutes that it will be a difficult afternoon. Shortly after Sherel Floranus had to be treated for an apparently serious injury after three minutes, Yoann Cathline also fell to the ground. Unlike Floranus, the Frenchman must be replaced. Pascu comes on for him.
After this conversion, Almere City FC has difficulty establishing the organization and that leads to the first big chance of the match. The ball is touched in the five-meter area, causing Ajax to miss the opportunity.
The Amsterdam team then pressed on and took a large 3-0 lead within ten minutes. It is Steven Bergwijn who sees all his touches converted into goals, with which the captain can add a hat trick to his summary.
Almere City FC comes out of its shell a little in the second half. Shortly after the break, this translated into an opportunity for Kornelius Hansen, who emerged free in front of goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli. Hansen is unselfish, but his ball out wide is intercepted. Less than a minute later, Hansen appears again in front of the keeper. This action does result in a bulging of the net (Pascu hits the target with a deflected ball), but now it is the linesman who throws a spanner in the works. Hansen is offside with his shoulder, as can also be seen from the VAR lines.
Almere City FC still hands out some pinpricks and even has several chances to get rid of zero. However, it fails to save honor. Almere City FC is no longer a small boy. The impressively filled away section (with more than 800 people) is the noisy witness of this and deserved more.
The first season in the Premier League will be over next week. Almere City FC will then play against NEC Nijmegen at home in front of its own audience.
Photo’s Ron Baltus / sportsshots.pro
